The Manchurian Slayer
by M. Scott Eiland
Summary: Faith is captured by the Mayor and Trick and brainwashed. . .can she be stopped from her deadly mission?
1. Default Chapter

The Manchurian Slayer  
  
Summary: Faith is captured by the Mayor and Trick and brainwashed. . .can she be stopped from her deadly mission?  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters portrayed here, they remain the property of their respective owners/creators.  
  
Rating: PG-13, for violence and portrayal of brainwashing.  
  
Time Frame: Between "Amends" and "The Zeppo" (so that's where Faith was!)  
  
Archiving: Be my guest, but e-mail me (eilandesq@aol.com) to let me know. . .I like to know where stuff I write ends up and I might want to see what else you've got.  
  
Note: I have borrowed from the basic plotline of "The Manchurian Candidate", which was written by the brilliant Richard Condon (who, alas, is no longer with us). Obviously, the plotline here is far less complex and far more compressed in time frame, and I would also say that the ending is far more reminiscent of the movie made from the book in 1962 (which starred Frank Sinatra, Angela Lansbury, Laurence Harvey, and Janet Leigh, and was directed by John Frankenheimer) than of the book itself.  
  
  
THE MANCHURIAN SLAYER  
  
Part I  
  
  
Faith prowled the graveyard, inwardly smiling at the small patches of melting snow that she saw on the ground as she walked along. That had been quite a sight. . .snow falling just as dawn was supposed to break. . .she and Joyce Summers had walked out onto the front lawn and had looked up in sheer wonder at the sight. It had apparently been a life saver for Buffy's squeeze, too. Faith frowned: she was still ambivalent about the ensouled vampire-he made her edgy with his relentless brooding, not to mention his obsession with Buffy. Inwardly, she shrugged: it wasn't as if she'd let them get inside. . .she trusted no one, and she liked it that way.  
  
Abruptly, a vampire ran close by her, heading for a nearby alley. Faith grinned ferally and chased him into the alley. She cornered him and drew a stake, smiling sadistically at the cowering vampire. "Now that wasn't very bright, was it?" She advanced on him slowly and was only a few feet away when she heard a voice from the entrance of the alley."  
  
"Actually, he did exactly what I told him to." Faith turned slowly with a sinking feeling and saw that Mr. Trick was at the entrance of the alley, pointing a tranquilizer gun at her. Desperately, she charged at him, only to take a tranquilizer dart in the chest. She went down, and the last thing she heard was, "What do you know. . .this thing isn't just for werewolves any more."  
  
One week later. . .  
  
Trick waited impatiently as the Mayor worked on the crossword puzzle and sipped from the glass of milk in front of him (Trick had politely refused a glass when he had arrived a few minutes before). The Mayor looked over at him and asked, "Mr. Trick, do you know a five letter word for extreme boredom?"  
  
Yeah, particularly since I'm living it right now, thought the vampire. He stifled the response and replied, "Ennui." As the Mayor smiled and filled in the space, Trick felt compelled to say something. "Ah, Mr. Mayor. . .would it be unreasonable to ask what I'm doing here?. . .I've got stuff going, including some projects you put me on yourself." He frowned and asked, "Does this have to do with us putting the snatch on that Slayer rather than just taking her out last week?"  
  
Wilkins smiled and replied, "Mr. Trick, your instincts, as usual, are quite good. Yes, it does have to do with our. . .acquisition of Faith." He gestured, and ordered, "Have a seat. . .we'll begin now." He pressed the intercom button on his desk and asked the secretary to send the waiting visitors in. Trick was shocked to see that the first to enter the office was Faith: he tensed for a moment before noticing the blank look in her eyes. She walked over to an empty chair and sat without a sound as the other visitor entered. He was Asian (Chinese probably, Trick thought after examining him for a moment) and very old, with folds of parchment-like skin obscuring most of his features-he had dark, hooded eyes. Trick watched him for a moment before noting that he was not breathing; clearly, this was not a human. The Mayor turned to Trick and spoke in a cheerful voice, "Mr. Trick, this is Dr. Yen Lo." The two shook hands, and the coolness of the doctor's hand confirmed what Trick had suspected-Yen Lo was a vampire.  
  
The Mayor asked the doctor to sit down, but he refused, indicating that he was comfortable as he was. The Mayor nodded in assent and requested, "Why don't you start, Doctor? We're both anxious to see what you've done with this stubborn little girl here."  
  
Yen Lo smiled coldly and began, "Faith is quite a challenging subject. . .even with the modern hypnotic drugs, which I would have loved to have access to in my days with Chairman Mao's government before my turning, it took me several days to get her into a pliable state. She trusts no one, and she has turned that distrust into her armor against the world, for better and for worse." He frowned, then continued, "Still, my techniques have improved in the last fifty years, and no one human-or superhuman-could resist them forever. To make a long story short, I have conditioned Faith to respond to a certain triggering phrase that will trigger a stimulus that will cause her to respond to commands, then forget immediately what she has done. The trigger is absolutely reliable and will put her under the control of the person who utters the phrase and thereby triggers the stimulus."  
  
Trick frowned and asked, "You're telling me that you have that crazy bitch under your control right now?" The Mayor frowned at the use of language, and Trick continued in a more sedate vein. "I don't suppose you would care to demonstrate that control, Doctor?"  
  
Yen Lo did not take offense; instead, he turned to Faith and called out, "Faith, dear, would you please walk up to Mr. Trick and kiss him on the lips?" He turned to Trick and whispered for him to assume his true face: he did so. Without hesitation, Faith walked up to Trick and kissed him on the mouth, hard. He was so surprised that he actually lost his game face, and he was still staring when Yen Lo ordered her to resume her seat. "I gave her an open-ended command to follow all of my orders until I say a certain word to her. Left alone, she would sit there until she starved without the slightest complaint."  
  
"Impressive," the Mayor noted, looking intently at the vacant gaze of the Slayer sitting in his office, "but will she do that for me? And how versatile is the range of control here?"  
  
Yen Lo walked over to the Mayor and whispered to him for a moment before walking away and placing a deck of cards on the edge of the Mayor's desk. The Mayor pressed his intercom button and called, "Alan, would you come in here for a moment?" The assistant mayor came in a moment later, looking befuddled as usual, and sat down in response to the Mayor's signal. Wilkins turned to Faith and called out, "Up for some solitaire?"  
  
Faith stiffened, then stood up and took the deck of cards from the desk. She looked around for a convenient surface; finding none, she flopped down onto the floor like the teenager she was and began the layout for the classic solitaire game of Klondike. As she did so, Yen Lo explained, "The phrase has triggered the automatic response of starting the solitaire layout. The beauty of this is that most of her peers would not be caught dead playing solitaire; thus, the phrase is unlikely to come up in any discussions she might have with her acquaintances. The stimulus that will make her ready to receive commands is the King of Hearts, which represents her love/hate relationship with the men who have traveled through her life. . .ah, there it is."  
  
The King of Hearts had appeared on the layout: Faith paused and waited silently. Wilkins waited for but a moment, then spoke up with an evil grin. "Faith, go open that cabinet over there and take out the crossbow in there, then wait until I give you another order." She got up and followed the order without hesitation. Wilkins smiled and ordered, "Now, load the crossbow, point it at Alan over there, count out loud to ten, and fire."   
  
Alan turned white and looked as if he wanted to run, but the sight of Trick sitting there shaking his head discouraged that idea. He began to sweat freely as Faith pointed the now-loaded crossbow and began counting in a flat tone: "1...,2...,3...,4...,5...,6...,7...,8..." At this point, Wilkins called out, "Faith, unload the crossbow and put it down, then go to Alan and sit in his lap and await further instructions." She did so, and Alan began to blush as the beautiful young woman climbed into his lap and sat there blankly, waiting for an order. Wilkins chuckled and commented, "I do so love teasing that boy. . .Doctor, I am very impressed. Is she ready to go back?"  
  
The vampire nodded and elaborated, "There are a few more things that I would like to plant in her mind, with the goal of making her more useful for your stated goals for her. After that, we should let her go back on her wandering patrols. . .I have planted false memories of a dozen or so slayings in the last week, so that she does not wonder where the last week has gone. Eventually, she will rejoin her friends, and you will be able to have her pick them off one by one, finishing with the other Slayer. After that, she will be available to return to you as your perfect assassin."  
  
Wilkins began to clap, and after a moment Trick joined in. Alan just sat there, looking terrified at the presence of the "perfect assassin" sitting in his lap. The Mayor stood up and said to Yen Lo quietly, "Well done, Doctor. I'm doubling your promised bonus. . .though you might have to wait for a little while. . .fifteen year old virgins aren't thick on the ground here, you know." Yen Lo chuckled at the truth of the Mayor's statement and nodded as the Mayor continued, "I'll leave you two alone to finish the job. . .come on, gentlemen. I'm up for some ice cream." Trick followed, rolling his eyes, while Alan gently untangled himself from Faith and fled after his boss. With the room empty but for himself and Faith, Yen Lo carefully looked at his project and spoke calmly: "Now, Faith, if you're ever going to be a useful ally for our friend the Mayor, we're going to have to deal with this unfortunate distrust you have for everyone." He smiled at the irony of the statement, then began: "Up for some solitaire?"  
  
  
***  
  
  
In the history of the world, much of what we know as being history resulted from simple chance. Some person living tens of millennia ago discovered by sheer chance that spices made food taste good. Lou Gehrig launched his legendary consecutive games streak because Wally Pipp woke up with a headache one day. And Buffy the Vampire Slayer and her best friends avoided being picked off one by one by a conscienceless assassin because, at the time, Xander Harris had a tremendously bad love life.  
  
Faith showed up back in town a few days after Buffy had suffered the horrors of her Cruciamentum. Buffy opened the door and saw Faith there, uncharacteristically cheerful. The younger Slayer's expression changed as she saw the remaining bruises and other injuries on Buffy's face: "What the hell happened to you, B?" Buffy sat her down in the living room and told her the whole story. By the time she had finished, Faith's face was a mask of rage. "Damn those bastards! They almost killed you and your mom, and they FIRED Giles for helping to save you!? Screw this!" She began to get up, but Buffy tried to restrain her: the still-lessened strength in her grasp caused Faith to get even angrier when she realized what was happening. Buffy resorted to locking eyes with Faith and quietly asking her to sit down, which Faith did, still mumbling under her breath. They talked for a while, and they agreed that while they were both definitely pissed off at the Council, they would stay on the job because it still needed to be done, and because Giles wanted them too. Buffy was pleased at the amount of loyalty that Faith felt for Giles, though it seemed out of step with her emotional state the last time Buffy saw her. . .perhaps it was the shock of hearing about the Cruciamentum. . .  
  
After a few minutes, they headed out to the Bronze, and they didn't need to look long before running across Willow, Oz and Xander. They sat down, and greetings were exchanged all around before Xander piped up, "You two are just in time to hear the latest developments in the mini-Hellmouth I call my love life."  
  
Oz commented, "Yeah, for some reason he thinks he needs a more sympathetic audience." Even Willow laughed at that, as Xander blushed and retorted, "I don't remember asking you to be funny guy, Oz man."  
  
Faith laughed inwardly. Poor Xander, he'd had it rough since that Spike thing had resulted in he and Willow getting caught playing snugglebunnies. . .he wasn't a bad sort, really. Maybe she should. . .no, maybe not, she thought, Buffy would not be happy, she takes screwing too damned seriously, and Willow would freak, even though she'd gone back to Oz. Oh well, he's on his own. She listened as Xander continued complaining, ". . .so she said, 'Not in this lifetime, pal.' It had gotten to the point where my love life consisted of me looking in a mirror and saying seductively, "Up for some solitaire?"  
  
While the others laughed, Faith stiffened and stood up, looking around until she spotted the bar. She walked away without a word, and walked over to the bartender while the remaining occupants looked at her in puzzlement. "What's with Faith?" Willow asked Buffy, scratching her head in bewilderment. Buffy frowned and replied, " I don't know, but it did seem a little weird, didn't it?" They watched as Faith obtained a deck of playing cards, sat down at the table next to them, and began playing solitaire.  
  
Buffy called over, "Faith, are you all right?" The younger Slayer didn't answer, being intent on the game. After a moment, the group collectively put it down to Faith's antisocial tendencies and Xander began his narrative again, not noticing that the King of Hearts had come up and that Faith was staring blankly into space. Xander was on a roll, and he actually seemed to be relishing the story of his misery as her continued, "So I was fed up, and I thought, what the hell, if I'm going to get rejected, I might as well get rejected by hotter babes." Buffy and Willow rolled their eyes, but Xander was undaunted. "So I walked into this place with my handy-dandy fake ID, and there she was: five foot ten, redhead, absolutely stunning. I took a deep breath, walked up to her, and looked her right in the eyes as I said, 'Hey, I've got a great idea. Why don't you get out of your seat-" Faith, sitting within earshot at the next table, stood up at this "-come over to me, and give me the best kiss you've ever given to any man." The others groaned at this, as Xander finished glumly, "Do you have any idea how much a Bloody Mary stings when it's thrown in your eyes. . .Mmph!"  
  
Distracted by their laughter, Buffy and the others failed to notice Faith until she had slid into his lap and started kissing him with a hungry passion. Once they did notice, they all were at a loss as to how to proceed. Xander did not seem to be in trouble, but there was definitely a glazed look in his eyes as he looked at the Slayer who seemed to be intent on sucking the air out of his lungs, if not the fillings from his teeth. Willow looked outraged, and snapped, "Cut that out, right now! How da-" She stopped at the sound of Oz clearing his throat, and turned to see a mildly annoyed look on her boyfriend's face. She blushed and backtracked, muttering softly, "Well, she didn't ask first." Buffy was also shocked, but she decided to wait, given the possible problems in removing her against her will. After about thirty seconds, Xander's eyes rolled over to Buffy and signaled frantically for her to intervene, though the activity around his lip area suggested that the sentiment was not shared by all of Xander. Buffy carefully moved behind Faith and lifted her off of the startled Xander. At first, she resisted, and Buffy knew that the younger Slayer was still stronger than her. . .this could be a problem. With his lips freed, Xander said quietly to Faith, "Uh. . .thanks Faith, but I think that's enough, now."  
  
Immediately, Faith stopped resisting Buffy, got to her feet, and sat down where she had been sitting before she retrieved the cards from the bar. She blinked, then looked over at the disheveled Xander, asking, "So why did you stop, Xander? What happened after that chick told you 'Not in this lifetime?'"  
She smiled as she anticipated the rest of the story, and only eventually realized that the other occupants of the table were staring openly at her. Puzzled, she said the first thing that came to mind. . .  
  
"What? Was it something I said?"  
  
. . .to be continued.  
  
  
As always, comments are welcomed and desired  
  
  
  



	2. Part II

Part II  
  
  
"What? Was it something I said?"  
  
Buffy reacted with remarkable composure to Faith's confusion. "Nothing, Faith, there's just something on your lip." She reached out and dabbed at the nonexistent spot with a napkin, and continued, "There, that's got it. . .Hey, I just realized, Giles will want to talk to you about your time out on patrol alone, and about this whole stupid Council thing. Why don't you head over there, and we'll follow you in a few minutes."  
  
Faith looked at Buffy for a long moment, and Buffy assumed a poker face. At length, Faith shrugged and replied, "Good idea, B. I want Giles to know I'm still on board, and I got in some righteous slaying while I was gone." She got up and breezily said, "Later, guys," before heading out. Sensing some major discussion was about to erupt, Buffy held her hand up until she was sure Faith had left, then she turned to her friends and whispered, "All right, is it me, or is Faith seriously playing Amnesia Girl?"  
  
"I was waiting for the Twilight Zone music to start up," Xander commented, still looking dazed. "She didn't have a clue what happened, did she?"  
  
Buffy frowned and replied, "No, I don't think so. When she left the table, she looked almost like she was in some sort of trance. Willow-" she turned to her friend, knowing that her memory was of legendary accuracy, "at what point in Xander's story did she stand up?"  
  
Willow thought for a moment, then replied, "Xander had just said, 'It had gotten to the point where my love life consisted of looking into a mirror and saying seductively, "Up for some solitaire?"'" At that, they all looked over at the table where Faith had been sitting and saw the solitaire layout. Willow looked confused and whispered, "What's going on, Buffy? Xander mentions solitaire, and she goes off and plays it, followed by her crawling all over him? What kind of insanity is this?"  
  
Oz snickered, and Willow turned to glare at him while Xander retorted, "Why is it that everyone thinks it requires some kind of cataclysmic event to make women be attracted to me. . ." He trailed off as he saw his friends looking at him, and he remembered the story he had been telling, together with some of his recent history, and he finished with, "I'm being quiet now."  
  
Buffy gave him a sympathetic look, then turned to Willow and replied, "Xander told that story about the redhead where he used that lame line, and it seemed that Faith took it as some sort of command. . .she acted it out precisely, then stopped when Xander was able to tell her to. Something weird is going on here. . .and we need Giles' help. Willow, I want you to examine that solitaire layout so that you can duplicate it for Giles later. Oz, stay with her." She gestured at Xander and ordered, "All right, Hormone Boy, let's sit down over here. We need to have a talk."  
  
Xander was confused. "What about, Buffy."  
  
Buffy's expression was concerned as she explained, "I know you're in rebound mode right now, and I'm betting that you are suddenly seeing Faith as a pleasant alternative to your present situation regarding the wacky." Xander seemed ready to issue a heated denial, but Buffy's concerned stare seemed to demand the truth, and he nodded curtly as Buffy continued, " Look, I won't stand in your way if you're determined, but Faith told me some stuff about how she felt about guys in general, and I think you have a right to know. . ."  
  
  
***  
  
  
It was half an hour later when Buffy and the Scooby Gang got to the library. They found Giles busily taking notes as Faith described another slaying. She spotted the four of them and called out, "Hey, guys! Good idea to send me ahead, B. Giles and me, we had a lot of catching up to do. So how about I finish here and then we all go out and kick some vampire ass?"  
  
Buffy managed a normal -looking smile as she replied, "Sounds good, Faith. Damn, I wanted to take my crossbow, with my strength still being low and all, and I left it at my house. Could you run over and grab it for me? I still don't feel comfortable heading over on my own, with my power level down and all."  
  
Faith grinned and walked over to Buffy, squeezing her shoulder. "Sure, B. It's the least I can do, with you clueing me in on what those bastard Watchers were up to. I'll be back in a few." She darted out the door, and Giles looked confused. "Buffy, you went out alone last night with no problems. Is there something you haven't been telling me?" He looked guilty, apparently wondering whether his actions were still exposing Buffy to unnecessary danger.  
  
She turned to him and replied, "I'm fine, although she's still quite a bit stronger than I am. No, the problem is Faith." She quickly explained what had happened at the Bronze, and Giles frowned as if he was trying to remember something. Buffy noticed it and asked, "What's wrong?"  
  
Giles frowned and began pacing, trying to stimulate his memory; after a moment, it came to him and he paused with a deeply concerned look on his face. Seeing that the others were on pins and needles waiting for him to say something, he did not delay further: "You all know that my father and grandmother were both Watchers. Well, there were other members of my family that were involved in matters involving a great deal of discretion. My maternal grandfather was a field agent for British Intelligence, and occasionally he would tell me some things that were no longer serious matters for state secrecy, though he always swore me to silence. I think he'd forgive my letting this one out, though." He cleared his throat, then continued, "During the Korean War, a group of American soldiers was seized by a North Korean patrol and taken to a place where they were brainwashed by a Chinese doctor named Yen Lo. One of the soldiers, the stepson of a United States Senator, was brainwashed to do whatever he was told when exposed to certain stimuli. The others were simply brainwashed to tell a story that would guarantee the soldier would be awarded the Medal of Honor, which would improve his access to high level targets later on. Eventually, the plot was uncovered and the soldier's programming undone. . .but he chose to go on his own to eliminate the Americans involved in the assassination conspiracy. . .his own mother and stepfather. . .before committing suicide."  
  
There was silence in the room for a long moment before Buffy spoke. "Yuck. I could have gone my whole life without hearing that story. What's the connection to Faith?"  
  
Giles frowned and replied, "The initial triggering mechanism was the phrase, "Why don't you pass the time by playing a little solitaire?", after which the soldier would play solitaire until the queen of diamonds was turned up, after which he would be subject to commands that he would inevitably obey."  
  
Willow had been laying out the cards as she remembered them and turned to Giles. "The last card she turned was the King of Hearts." She shook her head and commented sadly, "We've got a big problem, don't we?"  
  
Giles smiled reassuringly and replied, "Not necessarily, Willow. If I'm right, and something similar has been done to Faith, we've had a tremendous stroke of luck. If we can use the triggering phrase on Faith, she will be as obedient to us as to her intended masters. We can find out what happened to her and who did it to her ."  
  
Buffy's face was concerned, but the concern rapidly turned to anger as she commented, "I don't like doing this to Faith, but if someone has been messing with her brain, we need to find out, for her sake and ours." They all sat down and quietly waited for her to return. A few minutes later, Faith walked in carrying the crossbow and a quiver of bolts. "All right, B, we're ready to party. Want to take off now?"  
  
Buffy looked sadly at Faith as she replied, "In a minute, Faith." She took a deep breath and spoke in a clear voice, "Up for some solitaire?"  
  
Faith's face went blank, and she began to scan the room for a deck of cards. She saw it at one of the tables and sat down, shuffling the deck and setting out the Klondike layout. As the others watched in fascination and horror, she continued playing for some time, then stopped. All present could see that the last card she had turned was the King of Hearts. She sat patiently, breathing slowly and staring blankly. Buffy turned to Giles and whispered, "Okay, one brainwashed Slayer. Now what?"  
  
Giles whispered back, "You should order her to do something she would ordinarily find offensive, but nothing that would be harmful or traumatic to her should she remember it later." Buffy thought a moment, then a faint smile appeared on her face as she walked over to Faith and whispered in her ear for a moment. Faith stood up, walked to the middle of the floor of the library and began singing: "I love you. . .you love me. . ." and went on from there, singing the Barney song. Xander winced and whispered, "I thought you weren't supposed to traumatize her?" Buffy smiled grimly at him as Faith walked over to Oz and gave him a big, friendly hug with a goofy expression on her face. Willow looked outraged for a moment, then subsided as she reflected on how un-Faith this was. Oz, amazingly, kept his composure both during and after the hug: it was moments like this when Buffy wondered if Oz was more Vulcan than werewolf.  
  
Faith sat down and waited patiently. Giles walked over to the grim Buffy and suggested, "Now that we know how the mechanism works, we should find out what happened to her." Buffy nodded reluctantly and called out to Faith, "Faith, come over here and sit down. . .good, thank you. Now, Faith, I want you to tell us what happened to you since we saw you last just after Christmas."  
  
Without hesitation, Faith began to tell the story in a flat, quiet voice. Everyone was spellbound as she told how she had been captured, programmed, and released to be a hidden weapon against her friends. As Buffy listened, her grip on the heavy wood table grew tighter and tighter, and her face assumed an angrier and angrier expression. At the point where Yen Lo was putting into place Faith's final programming, the wood gave way with a loud snap, and Giles and the others turned to find a foot long section of wood had broken free and was in her hands for a moment before she tossed it away in disgust.  
  
Faith finished her narrative, then sat there blankly, in accordance with Buffy's initial order. Buffy was in a state of total outrage: the Mayor was some sort of evil scumbag who had been involved with some demonic conspiracy, and now he was messing with Faith? She would single-handedly tear down City Hall brick by brick to get those bastards. She had actually gotten up and was striding quickly to the door when Giles, divining her intent, called out, "Buffy, wait! Don't be rash. . ."  
  
Buffy turned on him and snapped, "Don't you tell me how I should be feeling about this! Do you have any idea what kind of violation we're talking about here? That goddamned thing with the Council was nothing compared to this! Giles, they were messing with her SOUL! I'm going to take them apart at the seams, and there's not a damned thing you can say to stop me."  
  
Giles' face took on a look of utter sympathy as he replied, "Buffy, believe me, I know what you're feeling. . .because I'm feeling it too." Buffy looked at him and saw the anger in his face as he looked over at his other Slayer, the one he had been unable to protect, and felt briefly guilty about snapping at him before listening to him continue, "But if the Mayor is controlling the vampires in town, and has Mr. Trick as an assistant, you would be walking into a deathtrap just as if you'd strolled into the Factory last year. . .it's bad enough what has happened to Faith. . .I won't lose you too on a reckless venture."  
  
Buffy had to acknowledge the truth of his words, and her frustration was evident. "Then what do we do, Giles?"  
  
Giles frowned and replied, "We can use the triggering phrase and cards to dismantle the programming. . .that would be one way, but it might leave Faith feeling a huge amount of remorse for her situation without any way to deal with it. . .on the other hand, perhaps we might leave her in place to wait for the inevitable call from the Mayor. . .and give His Honor a little surprise from his perfect assassin."  
He smiled coldly and elaborated, "Here's what we do..."  
  
. . .to be continued.  
  
  
As always, comments are welcomed and desired  
  
  
  



	3. Part III

Part III  
  
Three days later. . .  
  
Faith was sitting in bed, watching a rerun. She looked at the wall clock and saw that it was 6:30. At 7, she would head out on patrol for a while, then swing over to the Bronze to see if the guys were there. Funny, she wouldn't have been so inclined to hang out rather than slay, but Buffy and her friends had seemed to be making an effort to be particularly nice to her the past few days. During their workouts, Buffy had opened up, talking more about her past with Angel than she had ever been willing to before, and she had tried to not make Buffy regret it by avoiding rude comments about screwing vampires. Xander had also shot the breeze with her a few times, and even challenged her to some one on one basketball (and didn't complain when she mopped up the floor with him). Oz, of all people, asked her some questions about what it was like to hunt vampires. . .she figured he was trying to get a handle on the whole werewolf thing. Giles had been very diligent in trying to teach her some new things that he thought would help her in combat, and she respected his ability to fight without Slayer abilities enough to listen and to consider what he said seriously. Even Willow. . .Faith had always felt that the redhead was uncomfortable around her. . .they were too different. But Willow had sat down with her while she was eating her lunch and they talked, with Willow trying to find out what kind of stuff she was interested in, and amazingly, it turned out that they liked some of the same stuff. . .go figure. She didn't know why she was getting all of the attention: maybe with all this crap coming down from the Watchers' Council, they just wanted to make sure that the group was more tightly knit than before. Anyway, she liked the attention. . .  
  
The phone rang. Faith looked at it for a moment, as she didn't get many calls there. She picked up and spoke bluntly: "Yeah?"  
  
The voice on the other end was unfamiliar, but somehow Faith thought she recognized it as he asked, "Faith?"  
  
Faith was annoyed. Who was this? Bluntly she replied, "Yeah. Who's this?"  
  
The voice answered with four words: "Up for some solitaire?" Faith stiffened, then picked up the deck of cards on the nightstand and began to lay out the cards, the phone still between her ear and shoulder. When the King of Hearts appeared, she stopped and waited silently. Hearing the silence, the voice on the other end continued by ordering, "Faith, if you can see the King of Hearts, tell me by saying Yes."  
  
Still staring blankly, Faith replied flatly, "Yes." The voice continued, "Get ready and come to the Mayor's office right now. If you see any of your friends, avoid being seen. Goodbye, Faith." There was a click at the other end of the line. Faith got up and put on her jacket, then left the motel room. She didn't notice the brooding figure in the shadows, but he did see her, along with the blank look that Buffy had described to him. Angel watched her go and went to the pay phone, where he punched in a pager number, then a short message. He hung up the receiver and headed off into the night.  
  
Buffy had just finished off a rather lackluster vampire when her pager went off on vibrate. She looked at the message: 911-2. She took a deep breath: this was it. She headed off in the direction of City Hall at a dead run.  
  
  
***  
  
Faith opened the door of the Mayor's office and slipped in, walking until she stood in front of Wilkins' desk. The Mayor looked at her appraisingly and commented, "I do so love it when youngsters are obedient. Faith, sit down." She did so, and the Mayor looked carefully at her. "Faith, you're here because I want to make sure you're up to killing people before I have you start finishing off your friends. Can't have some nasty Slayer ethics getting in the way of work now, can we? Now, I want you to find some person you've never met, wait until there are no potential witnesses, then kill them in the most violent manner you can manage without getting a lot of blood on yourself. Do you understand?"  
  
Faith nodded and replied, "I understand." Wilkins smiled broadly, and ordered, "Then go." The Slayer stood up, and the four minion vampires in the room were transfixed with awe at the wonder of their worst enemy being at the mercy of their boss. Trick, less awed but still impressed, watched her with a smile on his face as she approached his position at the door. . .  
  
Abruptly, he felt a pain in his chest. He looked down to see a stake protruding from his heart, which Faith had just drawn from her sleeve and planted there without changing her expression. Exasperated, he howled, "Motherfu-!" before bursting into dust. The Mayor leaped to his feet and exclaimed, "Well, this isn't good at all. . .I'm going to cancel that extra virgin order for Yen Lo. . .oh well." He gestured at the four vampires and ordered, "Kill her please, gentlemen." They were advancing on the blank faced girl, who had retrieved the stake and was facing them when the door to the office was kicked off of its hinges. Buffy advanced into the room, at which point Alan, who had really not wanted to be there to begin with, dove into a corner and cowered. Seeing that the odds were not favorable, the Mayor attempted to dart past the Slayers into the safety of the corridor, only to take a punch to the jaw that sent him stumbling back into the wall, dazed. He slumped to the ground and stared blearily as the fight continued. The two Slayers, one enraged, the other calmly working at her task, quickly finished off the four vampires. Buffy gave Alan a cold look, but she could see that he was no threat. She turned to the recovering Mayor and gave him a death stare as she spoke quietly: "It's all over, Faith."  
  
Abruptly, the blank look left the younger Slayer's face, and Buffy watched her with utmost concern and sympathy as a look of genuine horror crossed her features. If they had done it right, Faith was now remembering everything that had happened to her since she was kidnapped.  
  
Giles had remembered that the military intelligence guys who had broken the brainwashed soldier's programming had done so by using a force pack, one with 52 of the same card, in order to install imperatives that would survive future tampering. Willow had acquired one from a local magic shop with all Kings of Hearts, then they had ordered Faith to play until there were seven Kings staring at her with their command to obey. Their instructions were simple: if the Mayor gives you orders to kill someone or do anything else terribly wrong, you will kill Trick, along with any other vampires there, then wait for Buffy to say "It's all over, Faith," at which time you will fully remember everything that happened to you and never be subject to any commands again. Then they had her sit there while they all, one by one, sat down and talked to her with affection, telling her that what happened to her wasn't her fault and that they would help her get through it. Buffy and Willow had punctuated their talks with hugs, and Buffy had been surprised by the genuine tenderness that Willow put into it, since she knew they had never been close. They had also made a point of spending time with her for the next few days. Then it was just a matter of keeping her under surveillance until the call came, and making sure that Faith had backup at the Mayor's office. That had been relatively easy, since the Mayor had relied on the security actually in his office: she had only had to dust one vamp to gain entrance.  
  
Now, as Faith struggled to deal with the flood of memories that were rushing through her brain, Buffy spoke coldly to the Mayor: "Your little plan failed, you bastard. You tried to use our friend to kill us, and you didn't even come close. And you're going to need a new assistant." She walked next to him, and the air of menace filled the room. "If I wasn't a Slayer, you'd be dead right now. You'd better be glad I'm one of the good guys."  
  
With complete composure, Wilkins met her gaze and smiled icily and replied, "That's why I'll win, Miss Summers. Ethics do tend to get in the way, don't they?"  
  
Buffy barely controlled the impulse to snap his skinny neck, then turned away contemptuously and walked to the door, calling out, "Let's get the hell out of here, Faith." She waited for the sound of footsteps approaching her, heard them, then realized that they were actually going away from her. She whirled just in time to see Faith gliding towards the still smug-looking Mayor with the stake in her hand. Horrified, Buffy shouted, "No, Faith, no!" as she ran to try to stop the younger Slayer. . .  
  
But she was too late. The stake was driven home with deadly efficiency, and the Mayor gasped. He slumped to the ground as Faith stepped back, her expression cold and merciless. Buffy paused just behind Faith, knowing that the wound was mortal and that she could do nothing. Wilkins looked up as his eyes clouded over, a look that vaguely resembled. . .respect?. . .on his face. His lips moved, and he managed to whisper what sounded vaguely like, "Well, gosh," before slumping dead to the carpet.  
  
Buffy was horrified beyond all belief, though part of her was saying that the bastard had it coming. All of this effort to save Faith, only to have this happen. . .She turned to Faith, trying to figure out something to say, only to be completely surprised when Faith lashed out, throwing a punch at a vulnerable nerve cluster. As Buffy fell to the carpet, she couldn't help but be annoyed that Giles had chosen now of all times to teach her that trick. It was useless against a prepared Slayer, but she had been caught utterly flatfooted, and she would be helpless for several minutes. She waited for Faith to deliver a deathblow, but all she saw was Faith looking down at her with an infinitely sad expression on her face.  
  
"I'm sorry, B," she started, looking apologetic, "but I'm taking off, and I can't let you stop me. . .and there are some things I want to tell you before I leave." She took a deep and shaky breath, then continued, "You asked me a lot of stuff, but you didn't know about some things to ask that I heard. The Mayor. . .he's been working up some major mojo for a long time. . .it was supposed to come to a conclusion on Graduation Day for you guys. I didn't hear many details, but it would have killed a lot of people, including you if you were still alive. . .if I hadn't killed you yet." She turned away and whispered, "You guys saved me from becoming a monster. . .the least I could do is to return the favor and get rid of that scumbag." She looked contemptuously at the still body of the Mayor, then turned back to Buffy. "But I've killed someone, and I know that I've crossed a line that I can't get back over. Better for me to go." She walked to the doorway, and turned back to her fellow Slayer one last time. "Tell the guys thanks, okay. And B, don't follow me." She walked out, and Buffy spent long, frustrated seconds while she waited for her muscles to start working again.  
  
At last, she could move again, and she whirled to see that Alan was still cowering in a corner. Well, he didn't kill me when he had the chance, thought Buffy, maybe the little wimp can help here. He glared at Alan and whispered menacingly, "I'm having a really bad day, buddy, and unless you're really helpful, I'm going to take it out on you. Got me?" Alan managed a weak nod, and Buffy continued, "I need all of the Mayor's confidential files, including the ones on the computer. Can you do that?" Alan nodded and practically dashed to the computer while Buffy walked to the phone and punched in a number. She waited, then started immediately when the other end picked up: "Giles. . .it's done. Get over here now, all of you. Faith's taken off, and she's in big trouble." She looked over at the corpse of the Mayor and noticed something odd. . .it was changing, somehow. She barked into the phone, "Hurry! I think we can still save her, if you hurry."  
  
. . .to be continued.  
  
  
As always, comments are welcomed and desired  
  
  
  



	4. Part IV

Part IV  
  
Faith was carrying the bag containing her meager possessions as she walked up the gangway to the freighter. . .it would leave in the morning, neatly ending her time in Sunnydale, for good or for bad. She reached the top of the gangway, and began to look for a convenient hatchway. . .  
  
"Faith! Please don't go!"  
  
Faith sighed in exasperation as she turned to face Buffy. "Damn it, B, I told you not to follow me! Don't think I won't kick your ass if you piss me off!"  
  
Buffy's face hardened for a moment as she snapped, "I'm back to full strength now, Faith. Don't think that you'd have a cakewalk. . ." Her face softened, and she continued in a more sedate tone, "Faith, I didn't come here to fight with you. Won't you please talk to me?"  
  
Buffy watched the younger Slayer as the emotions played a confused dance on her face. After a moment, she sat down on the gangway, dangling her legs over the edge, as she replied, "Fine. B. . .you know I don't have a problem with you now. . .but I've killed someone, we both damn well know it, and I'll be damned if I'll let those scumbags on the Watchers' Council be my judges, jury and executioners! If I leave, I take the problem with me."  
  
Buffy looked at Faith and replied, "That's just it, Faith. You didn't kill a human being. . .not really. You were right about the Mayor. . . we got into his secret files, and we found all kinds of stuff about what he was about. He was planning to transform himself into a really nasty demon and eating the graduating class. . .and he was about to undergo a ritual that would have made him invulnerable. . .but the most important thing is that he already had transformed himself into a minor demon. . .he was over 100 years old, and when you killed him, his body dissolved into goo. You didn't kill a person, Faith."  
  
Buffy saw a look of hope briefly cross Faith's face, only to harden into an implacable mask, "So what, Buffy? I thought he was human, and I killed him anyway! It's not as if I thought some guy was a vampire, and I killed him by mistake-I killed thinking I was ending the life of another human being! What does that make me?"  
  
Buffy summoned all of her strength to suppress the burst of rage that went through her as she comprehended the anguish her friend was going through. With superhuman control, she managed to quietly continue, "Faith, the Mayor was a monster, for what he did to you even if we ignore everything else he was about. If I had been in your place, knowing what you knew and having been used like you were, I can't say that I would have acted any differently. So can't you come back with me and deal with this? I swear that you will never have to deal with the Council on this. . .just me, Giles, and you."  
  
Buffy saw Faith smile: it was the most genuine emotion she ever saw the younger Slayer express. "Buffy, you're great. But can't you see that that doesn't solve my problem. . .maybe you can't, you're not in my head. . .not really, anyway." She looked intently at Buffy and asked quietly, 'Remember when Yen Lo put the last set of instructions in my head, the ones that were supposed to make me less distrustful of people?" Buffy nodded, and Faith continued, "Don't you get it, B? They recruited me because they thought I was the weak one. . . the one who could be turned against her friends. . .and when they got me, they decided that I was too messed up to even be evil without screwing with my brain!" She paused a long moment, then continued with the emotionless tone that Buffy knew had to be a surrogate for the tears that she knew that Faith would never shed, "Buffy, if I stay, I'll just hurt you. . . all of you. Please let me go. . .it's all I can give you."  
  
Buffy tried to choke down the wave of sorrow that Faith's words provoked and failed: tears sprang to her eyes as she shouted back, "Damn it, Faith! Don't you think I know how crappy it is to be us? Ever since I became the Slayer, the world has been conspiring to make my life miserable! I had to watch the one person who knew what it was like to be me die in my arms! I had to send the man I loved to Hell with my own hands to keep the world from coming to an end! But, damn it, if you let those bastards send you running for cover, they win. . .and we can't let that happen! All right, maybe those scum actually managed to make you a better person by messing with you for their own sick purposes. . .use it, damn it! If the Master hadn't killed me, you wouldn't be here. . .and now there are two of us here ready to stick it to those evil bastards! Take what they gave you and use it to make their life hell! I'm not going to give up, Faith. . .you thought you were sacrificing yourself for us, but I've had enough of that crap. . .Come home, Faith."  
  
The anger was gone from Faith's face, but there was still the taint of hopelessness as she whispered to Buffy, "B, you can't imagine what it was like. . .to be turned into a tool for evil against your will, not being able to do a damned thing about it. . .I'm not sure I can live with it."  
  
Buffy looked at her with an expression of utter openness as she replied, "No, Faith, I guess I can't." Noting the surprised and hurt expression on Faith's face, she quickly continued, "I know someone who does, though." She gestured to the shadows, and Angel walked into view, his face concerned and sympathetic. Buffy continued, "I think that you two might have a lot to talk about."  
  
For a long moment, there was silence, and Buffy had begun to give up hope when a wistful smile appeared on Faith's face. She walked down the gangway and faced Buffy. She sighed and said softly, "I guess I can afford to give it a shot. . .after all, what do I have to lose now? Besides, I owe you guys, and I do want some payback. . .no place better than hanging out with you guys to do that."   
  
Buffy smiled and hugged Faith tightly, only to feel her stiffen. She backed off and Faith looked at her with amusement. "I'm still me, B, not Miss Touchy Feely." Buffy had the good grace to look embarrassed as Faith continued, "Oh, and pass the word on, B. I may be grateful to you guys, but if any of you tell about me singing the Barney song, Snyder's car is going to have a severed head as a hood ornament. Got me?"  
  
Buffy nodded. Faith was going to have a long road to recovery. . .but in some ways she was already back to normal..  
  
  
****  
  
. . .two weeks later  
  
  
Xander's heart raced as he pressed on the accelerator, outdistancing the angry undead gang members chasing him down. That had been close. . .he had been within an eyelash of identifying far more with Dead Boy than he ever cared to. All right, if he was too damned fragile to help avert the apocalypse that Willow had implied was coming, he would go to the library and report the existence of the new hazard from the undead, then call it a night. He had dealt with enough danger for that night. . .  
  
Violent motion to his right caught his eye, and the sounds of fighting reached his ears as he drove along. After a moment, he spotted Faith fighting with one of the Apocalypse demons. He knew that one of them was more than a match for a Slayer, and he had no intention of letting her die after they had fought so hard to get her back. After a moment, Faith knocked the demon back, and Xander slammed down the accelerator, plowing into the demon and knocking it back twenty feet, stunned. Xander shouted for Faith to get into the car, but instead she drew a nasty looking knife that he had never seen her use before and leaped onto the demon, driving the knife into the demon's chest and twisting hard. The demon wailed and slumped, dead beyond all doubt. Xander watched as Faith's eyes shone for a moment after the kill. . .then full awareness seemed to return, and she looked over at her benefactor. "Thanks for the assist, Xander. That bitch was putting up a wicked fight."  
  
Xander managed a weak smile as he replied, "All part of the service, milady. Even us helpless types like to contribute now and again." He paused and continued, "Anything else I can do to help?"  
  
Faith looked at him for a long moment before replying, "Yeah, you can drive me back to my room. . .I need a shower. . .and you can quit feeling sorry for yourself. We didn't ask you to back off because we think you're useless. . .we know better than that. It's just that these bitches are a lot nastier than your typical vamp. . .Giles was even upset about bringing Willow along, and she's one badass Wicca." She grinned and continued, "Relax, we still want you around. . .and if you can arrange to get that car into some fights, you might even manage to take out a few of these bitches for us." She put her hand on his shoulder and asked him quietly, "Are we five by five, Xander?"  
  
Xander relaxed, and for the first time in the last day or so, he actually felt good about himself. "Yeah, Faith, we are." He looked at the bloody knife in her hand and asked, "When did you start carrying around the hardware?"   
  
Faith smiled and replied, "After we took out that nest, Giles asked me to carry it around. . .just in case I ran into one of them. Funny, I don't think I would have listened to him a little while back. . .how about that as a side effect for my little problem, huh?"  
  
Xander thought for a while, trying to find something useful to say, but failed as they drove back to her motel. Giles, Angel and Buffy had been spending a lot of time with Faith, trying to help her deal with what had been done to her, and she had seemed to be gradually recovering from the unpleasant things that had been done to her. She had gone out on several patrols since then, always with Buffy and the rest of the Scooby Gang, and the slaying had seemed to be good therapy for her. Still, he worried about her. . .he remembered the time that he was possessed by the hyena spirit, and how he had hurt his friends under its influence. . .he could identify with what she had gone through better than anyone, except maybe Dead Boy.   
  
They arrived outside her room, and Xander let her out, commenting, "Well, I guess I'll see you later, Faith." She smiled at him and replied, "I need to wind down a bit before I shower. . .why don't you tell me what you've been up to today. Maybe it's just those pesky Slayer instincts, but I have a feeling that you've been up to something more interesting than donut runs."  
  
Xander smiled ruefully, then went into his story. Faith listened raptly to his story, and chuckled when he reached the point where he was fleeing madly from Jack and his boys. Xander looked annoyed, and she hastened to explain apologetically, "Sorry, I just was imagining a conversation between you and Angel if they had gotten their hands on you." After a moment, Xander was laughing too, and Faith winked at him before filling him in on the problem with the Hellmouth. Xander whistled and commented, "Not good for the home team. . .damn it, Faith, there has to be something I can do! I'm sick of being on the sidelines."  
  
Faith frowned, then replied, "We can always go back to the library. . .I bet Giles can find something for you to do that doesn't involve you getting your brains eaten by some nasty demon bitch. . ." She paused, with an odd expression on her face, and Xander looked at her with concern. "You okay, Faith?"  
  
She smiled at him and replied, "Yeah. . .I was just thinking. . .I ended up remembering everything that happened during that whole brainwashing gig, Xander. . .including that liplock I laid on you."  
  
Xander blushed furiously and stammered, "Uh, yeah. . .Faith, I'm sorry. If I'd known what was going on. . ."  
  
She smiled at him and retorted, "Yeah? Like you could have done anything about it in the state I was in. . .but I seem to remember that you were kissing back too, at least for a while, and doing a pretty good job of it, too." Xander was silent, and Faith continued, "Listen, I know you've been through a dry spell lately; in fact, it saved my life." She chuckled at the unlikeness of that, as did Xander, and she continued, "If you're up for it, I wouldn't mind another shot. . .there aren't that many good kissers around, you know."  
  
Xander, with great effort, restrained himself from the first response that came to mind, then carefully considered his next words before replying, "Uh, Faith. . .I'd be lying if I didn't say that the kiss you gave me was the best I've ever had. . .and Cordelia was no slouch, believe me. But Buffy told me how you feel about the guys you. . .get involved with. . .and I don't want you to be thinking about me that way. . .I care about you, Faith. I don't want to be just another notch on your . . .whatever." He tensed, having seen an angry Slayer at close range before and not wanting to think of the consequences when the angry Slayer was Faith.  
  
To his surprise, Faith only looked at him for a long moment before sighing and replying, "I can't say I blame you, Xander. . .but hear me out. I think that the main thing I've learned from this is that my old way of looking at things kind of sucked. I need to change some things. . .and I might as well start with you. I don't want to make you my boy toy. . .at least not yet." She smiled as Xander blushed again at this comment, then she continued, somewhat haltingly, "I've heard rumors that. . .sometimes people just go out on dates, without immediate danger of sex or demonic invasions. . .I think that might be kinda fun. . .how about you?"  
  
Xander thought for a long moment, and realized that his relationship with Cordelia, which seemed to be evenly divided between broom closet makeout sessions, car makeout sessions, and hanging out at the Bronze, could hardly be called normal dating either. He took a deep breath and replied, "Well, I hear that some people actually go out to nice restaurants for a date, with everyone wearing nice clothes and all that." He pictured Faith in an evening gown in candlelight, and the image brought a gentle smile to his face. He looked at the Slayer and commented quietly, "I guess we both could benefit from a little normality. . .Okay, assuming we both make it through the night, let's talk about it." He got up and remarked breezily, "Well, I'll leave you to your shower. . .time to report to General Giles." He walked over and kissed Faith on the forehead gently, waiting for a negative response but noticing none, before whispering, "Thanks, Faith. . .I'm feeling quite a lot better about things since I ran into you." He quietly left the room, in a rather good mood. . .which lasted until he found the makings of a large bomb resting in his back seat.  
  
Faith watched him go, a subtle smile on her face, then her face hardened again. Oh well, she thought, time to save the world again. She pulled off her clothes, ready to wash off the grime and get ready for yet another battle.  
  
  
As always, comments are welcomed and desired  
  
  
  



End file.
